Ukraine laid anti-drone netting totaling about 510 miles this year

Ukraine has installed 822 kilometers, roughly 510 miles, of anti-drone protection on frontline roads this year, the defense ministry said. About 131 miles of that netting was laid in May alone, while the north–south length of Florida by road is roughly 447 miles from the Georgia border to Key West.

The State Special Transport Service sets up wooden or metal frames along roads and drapes mesh over them to form tunnels that can stretch for miles. Much of the material is repurposed farming or fishing mesh, often donated by Western allies, and is effective at catching the propeller blades of small attack drones.

Both Ukrainian and Russian forces first used nets to shield armored vehicles, and in late 2023 began covering fixed positions as unjammable, fiber-optic drones entered the battlefield and electronic warfare grew less reliable. Russia was the first to construct mesh tunnels at scale on roads under its control, with footage from the spring of 2025 showing highways in Donetsk covered.

Ukraine, Donetsk

ukraine, anti-drone, netting, frontline roads, transport service, mesh tunnels, propeller blades, western allies, electronic warfare, russia